When Ian Somerhalder and Paul Wesley first met on the set of The Vampire Diaries in 2009, they never would have imagined that their bond would lead to the creation of a premium whiskey.
Over the next eight years, the pair played brothers Damon and Stefan Salvatore on The CW’s hit supernatural series, and forged an inseparable friendship for the popular Southern spirits, with a shared bromance both on and off screen.
That led them to their next role: creating Brothers Bond Bourbon.
“The name symbolizes the brotherhood we share,” Somerhalder said in a recent phone interview. “These characters connected a huge audience with their love of good whiskey. It was while sipping it that they realized they didn’t want to kill each other. I’m from Louisiana and Paul is from New Jersey, and he fell in love with the Southern spirit while filming the show. We blended it in my kitchen for over a year to get it to the perfect taste. It takes a lot of patience and a lot of capital and time. This is why some people don’t last long in the whiskey business.”
Somerhalder and Wesley realized they already had a huge impact on on-screen audiences and wanted to create something special.
“It’s more about the emotion you get when you see the label,” Somerhalder says. “We need unity now more than ever, and Brothers Bond brings people together. It’s great for us to realize that people are sharing an experience together, whether they’re at a bar or sitting in a campsite. It makes us smile.”
Since its launch in 2021, the company has produced three products: Straight Bourbon Whiskey, Cask Strength Bourbon Whiskey, and American Blended Rye Whiskey. The four grain and high rye bourbons are aged for a minimum of four years in virgin American oak barrels.
Brothers Bond Bourbon Original Cask Strength has already won numerous platinum and gold awards, including two impressive wins last year: Double Gold at the San Francisco World Spirits Competition and being a finalist for Best in Show in the Straight Bourbon Whiskey category at the New York World Spirits Competition.
“I’m working harder than I’ve ever worked in my life,” said Somerhalder, who also runs a health and wellness brand. “Because life is all about balance. Building the Brothers Bond brand has been hard work. But I want people to know that we’re guys just like you. We work hard. It’s hard work. I’m a dad, I ride bikes, but we’re also great whiskey makers.”
Wesley agrees that creating their award-winning bourbon has been a brotherly and hard-working effort. “Becoming a bourbon maker has been an incredibly rewarding journey and extremely hard work – it’s been blood, sweat and tears,” he says. “We’ve been fortunate to bring together some of the best people in the industry to create Brothers Bond Bourbon, and I can’t wait to hear the positive reviews consumers have of what Ian and I have created.”
Somerhalder believes Brothers Bond’s “ready-to-drink, quality, nuance and complexity” sets it apart from the competition. “We know this is a well-crafted spirit,” he says. “To be successful and make an impact on consumers, you need two things: a story and a quality product. You can have a great story, but if you don’t have the quality, consumers aren’t going to come back.”
Not only do Somerhalder and Wesley produce award-winning bourbon made from 100% natural ingredients from American farms, but they’ve already made a name for themselves in the agriculture industry by supporting regenerative agriculture practices.
A portion of the proceeds goes back into supporting sustainable agriculture by safely transferring carbon emissions from the atmosphere into the soil and protecting natural food and water supplies.
“The future looks very exciting,” Somerhalder says. “We have new whiskeys, we have regenerative whiskeys coming out soon. 94 percent of our grain is regeneratively grown. That’s pretty special.”
When it comes to the tattoos, each one has something special and, of course, they all happen to be designed by the same tattoo artist.
“First off, this publication is awesome, but I only have one tattoo,” Somerhalder says. “Tattoos are things people look at to remember or forget things. One thing I’ve realized since I was a kid is that we live in the past that’s gone or in the future that may never happen, but we don’t live in the present. I had tattoo artist Taka (Tamada) at Body Electric in Melrose give me a tattoo that says ‘hic et nunc,’ which is Latin for ‘here and now.'”
“I got a rose tattooed on my right shoulder 15 years ago,” Wesley says, “to cover up a tattoo I had when I was 16, which faded as I grew up, so I wanted to create something timeless. I designed the rose with Taka Tamada – coincidentally, Taka also did Ian’s tattoos – and I really love it.”
Brothers Cask Old Fashioned
material
1 oz Brothers Bond Cask Strength Straight Bourbon Whiskey 0.5 oz Amaro 0.75 oz Simple Syrup 2 dashes Angostura Bitters
method
Measure all ingredients into a jigger and strain into a lowball glass. Add ice and stir. Garnish with orange peel.
If you want to see more articles like this, check them out here.
